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Ramiz Raja's old 'Pakistan cricket can collapse without India support' video goes viral amid Asia Cup venue controversy
An old video of PCB president Ramiz Raja is doing rounds on social media amid the ongoing controversy over Asia Cup 2023 venue.
The bilateral ties between India and Pakistan in terms of cricket took a strong blow on Tuesday as BCCI secretary and Asian Cricket Council (ACC) Jay Shah announced that the Men In Blue won't travel across the border for the Asia Cup 2023. Instead he mentioned that the continental tournament will take place at a neutral venue. The decision was taken during 91st Annual General Meeting in Mumbai on the same day.
"The Asia Cup 2023 will be held at a neutral venue. I am saying this as ACC President. We [India] can't go there [to Pakistan], they can't come here. In the past also, Asia Cup has been played at a neutral venue," said Shah.
What followed next was stern reactions from the Pakistan cricket fraternity, who argued that they should also consider not traveling to India for the ICC men's World Cup, which is scheduled to be held next year.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) also expressed their disappointment, releasing an official statement earlier on Wednesday afternoon.
However, amid the ongoing controversy, an old video of PCB president Ramiz Raja is doing rounds on social media. In the video, Raja can be heard explaining the importance of India's influence in world cricket, before adding that Pakistan cricket can 'collapse' without their support.
"Pakistan Cricket Board runs 50 percent on ICC funds. ICC funding is such that they organise tournaments and they distribute the money among their member boards. And Indian market contributes 90 percent to that ICC funds. So Indian business houses are running Pakistan cricket and if tomorrow the Indian Prime Minister decides he will not allow any funding to Pakistan, this cricket board can collapse," Raja can be heard saying in the video.
The cricketing ties between the two countries took a hit ever since the Mumbai attack in 2008. The Men In Blue had last traveled to the country in 2006.
Meanwhile, international cricket has recently returned to Pakistan after a long gap of over ten years. As per the FTP released earlier, Pakistan are scheduled to the Asia Cup (which will be a 50-over format ahead of the 2023 World Cup) next year and the Champions Trophy in 2025.
